I offered to log out and log back in to see what's up, though for some reason, Rina insisted for me to stay for a while longer before resorting to any drastic measures, because, and I quote:

"On the off chance that it's an eternal psychological prison, I would rather share it with someone else."

That doesn't make no sense in my humble opinion, because if it was indeed a prison, then I couldn't log out afterall, so what would be stopping me from just trying anyway? If I were to successfully log out, she probably can, too.

But, she insisted, so, I didn't question my own logic for a longer second, and so I just took the liberty to copy Rina and lay down there right next to her on bed.

Rina was next to me, resting against the cold bedsheet with her hands folded over her stomach like a statue of ancient significance. She didn't move much, just breathed slowly, her chest rising and falling beneath the plates of her light armor.

I turned my head, just a little, pretending to check the cracked ceiling… But everyone on Earth knew damn well I was looking at her.

There were barely any light on the second floor, but we've placed a torch on a stand on the wall. That faint red and yellow dim was magical and soothing, as if I was staring into the heart of a time once passed. A time where there was no electricity, a time where people would wake up at four and go to sleep at six, it was just one of those times, huh.

Rina… Her lastname is probably Wenswood based on what I saw of her Tweak handle, but it could've been just an online alias. Does Wens stand for Wednesday? That would be my first guess.

I stared at her while she closed her eyes and looked at the ceiling, unaware of my peeping Tom eyes.

There was something about the way red torch illuminated on her skin. I believe the effect that's happening would be called… Subsurface scattering.

It wasn't really the kind of soft light that helped a woman blend in her features, but it was harsh and flickering faintly as the torch was uneven, sometimes it would grow bright, sometime it would half-dim, as if affected by the non-existing wind.

The red on her skin almost carried another strange and unhuman tint of blue somewhere, probably from the mana residue still floating around this cursed tower. And yet, on Rina's flesh, it looked nice.

"Do you hear bird chirpings? Do you see the bright sun over the green meadows?" One of us asked, the other didn't reply.

Her skin was not bright white, she chose this barely tan, as if she spent three minutes on the beach after applying sunscreen while still laying under an umbrella shade for no good reason.

As I have mentioned several times, I like her fashion style… Just a piece of armor at the front, aflat piece that doesn't show her breast size sadly, but I beg that there is a humongous watermelon in there.

She left her shoulders bare, all the way down to the fingers, showing her arm profile, not muscular but not exactly stereotypical feminine thin either, I think I can distinct between the biceps and triceps if I look close enough, but I didn't get a chance.

She reminded me of that one saying… If you want an archer, start from training his grandfather.

Her hair was this almost colorless blonde, like the shade of sunlight you see when you close your eyes too long. It was long and smooth, incredibly smooth that one could ran a giant comb through it without catching any knotted strand.

A few strands stuck to her temple, a few rested close to my side and I could pick them up to play with.

She moved her head a bit, and her hair fluttered with her, still, I managed to hold on a strand and sniffed it.

I instinctively got my hands down there, but managed to contain myself from being the evil that this world does not need.

I turned back to stare at the ceiling, groaning to myself and sniffing the air to clear all the intrusive thoughts out.

Her nose had a sharp angle, giving her this constant look of maturity. I could imagine her scoffing at me after I said one of those dumb things that I always say…. Yeah, that fits her.

Her lips were dry, slightly chapped, but they shaped themselves into this faint, unbothered curve that almost looked like a smile if you squinted long enough.

She reminded me of Tanya, who, was also blonde, just more prominent blonde with short hair… Lol, who knows, maybe this could be Tanya? Considering that woman had shown to be able to shapeshift.

I hated that I was thinking this much.

I looked down at Rina's legs and then down at myself.

She was tall, like, annoyingly tall. If I stood next to her, I'd probably reach somewhere around her shoulder, maybe lower. Yet when lying down, we seemed equal, side by side in this weird frozen moment in time.

I couldn't help it. My eyes wandered again, her chest, her thighs, her armpit (barely exposed since both arms are closed on her stomach), her jawline, her collarbone, the way the dim red with tint o' blue light curved along her neck like she was carved and made from marble. M

My heart kept doing this stupid flutter thing, every time she inhaled, I counted the seconds she held it in, and exhaled at the same time at her.

Why did it feel so warm here all of a sudden? I should consider liberating myself from all these plates of armor that's hard to sleep in.

"You're staring," Rina said, eyes still closed.

My breath hitched, I squinted to see if she was peaking at me, but she didn't seem to.

"No, I'm not," I lied immediately.

"Mm," she murmured, a small grin tugging at her lips. "I believe you."

She didn't believe me at all, I immediately turned away, back against her. I looked at the stairs, feeling how exposed we are on this bed, and I gripped on my sword which I rested against it.

"You're really calm about this whole… this uh um… time-stopped nightmare situation, huh?"

"Sorry if that terrifies you." Rina groaned slightly as she turned her body, towards me, I assumed, because her voice seemed to get louder as if I was closer, "If we're stuck in a time bubble and we can do whatever until we escape, then this might be the only rest I we can get in a while."

"You can't sleep in Darkmoon Adventure VR, though." I pointed out.

"That's obvious," She replied uninterestingly, "But just being able to close your eyes, stop your thoughts and lay on your back is amazing enough."

"Fake sleeping in a digital prison," I said. "That's one way to cope."

She chuckled, asking me if I got any better idea?

I said I would log out, and she didn't answer, so I just stayed quiet, too.

Just two strangers lying on the same bed, dangerously close to each other, trapped in a tower where they might spent the rest of eternity. One's a raging homosexual, one's of unknown orientation, they might be roommates, historians said.

After a pause, Rina sighed, staring up at the ceiling again.

"The fact is… I don't even know what I'm trying to get away from," she said softly. "I thought it was work, bills, stress… like everyday stuff. But none of it feels like the reason, in fact I don't know if I actually have any problem in real life? I think I'm very stress-free, I do remember wanting to make dinner later, roast chicken with gravy… Then I'll knock out a glass of wine with a new book I've been meaning to get through, probably the Talmud?"

Her voice trailed off, and I turned my body again to be face-to-face with Rina. I stared at her profile outlined in the flickering light.

"I do want to get out of here," I whispered.

"You do?" Rina blinked at me, one brow lifting. "What do you have out there?"

I thought for a bit, before answering.

"My husband's probably worried sick."

The words left my mouth before I could think.

They hung there, foreign and wrong, like someone else had said them through me.

"Oh, you're married?" Rina asked naturally.

"He's actually a player, too, I'm wearing the Bracelets of Eternal Friendship right now, but he's not online so I couldn't see him." And for some reason, I answered wholeheartedly with a smile.

Rina didn't ask any further.

She just turned back to the ceiling, eyes half-closed again.

And me? I just kept staring at the woman.

I stared at her.

I keep staring at her for another minute while she was trying to rest.

The minute felt longer than an eternity already, and I wanted to do something.

"Rina…" I muttered, "What do you think about me?"

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